Training
What is Praxi?
Praxi is a comprehensive platform designed to measure and define human physical and cognitive visual functions empirically. Using advanced digital assessments, Praxi provides insights into an individual's visual strengths and weaknesses.
What do I do?
You will be asked to complete a survey and a full set of online assessments. The study and all assessments will take 30-45 minutes to complete. Each assessment will range from 30 seconds to a few minutes each.
Who can benefit from Praxi?
Praxi benefits a wide range of individuals, including athletes looking to improve performance, patients recovering from visual or neurological injuries, and older adults interested in aging resiliently with a focus on maintaining visual and cognitive health.
Vision therapy, often called "eye exercises" or "visual training," is a program of activities to improve visual skills and abilities. It is a non-surgical and customized treatment designed to correct specific vision problems and enhance visual performance. While not all eye conditions can be remedied through vision therapy, it can be particularly beneficial for particular issues.
Need more convincing? Here are some potential benefits of vision therapy:
- Improved Binocular Vision: Vision therapy can help coordinate the eyes to work ​together effectively. This is beneficial for those with binocular vision problems, ​which can lead to difficulties with depth perception and stereopsis (3D vision).
- Strabismus Management: Vision therapy can help individuals with strabismus ​(misaligned eyes) align their eyes and improve their eye teaming abilities.
- Amblyopia Treatment: Also known as "lazy eye," amblyopia is when one eye has ​reduced vision because the eye and brain are not working together correctly. ​Vision therapy can help stimulate the affected eye and improve visual acuity.
- Reduced Eye Strain: Vision therapy can provide exercises that reduce symptoms ​and improve visual comfort for people who experience eye strain, headaches, or ​blurred vision during tasks that require sustained focus (like reading or working on ​a computer).
- Enhanced Visual Processing: Vision therapy can help improve the speed and ​accuracy of visual processing, which is how the brain interprets and uses visual ​information.
More benefits of vision therapy:
- Improved Focus and Attention: By training the eyes to focus more effectively, individuals ​may find that they can concentrate better on tasks and that their attention span ​increases.
- Visual Rehabilitation: After a traumatic brain injury or stroke, vision therapy can be an ​integral part of rehabilitation to recover visual skills that may have been compromised.
- Sports Vision Enhancement: Athletes may use vision therapy to hone their visual skills ​for better performance in their sport, such as improving hand-eye coordination, reaction ​times, and peripheral vision.
- Relief from Visual Discomfort: Some individuals may experience visual discomfort or ​difficulties that can't be corrected with glasses or contact lenses alone. Vision therapy ​can provide strategies and exercises to alleviate these issues.
- Improved Reading and Learning: Difficulties with tracking, focusing, and eye teaming ​can interfere with reading and learning. Vision therapy can help overcome these barriers ​and improve academic performance.
To measure and define human physical and cognitive visual functions empirically.
The Assessments
ARCHER
Archer measures static visual acuity, or your ability to distinguish motionless objects as they decrease in size.
To
FADE
Fade measures contrast sensitivity, or your ability to distinguish objects as their brightness or darkness becomes similar to their surroundings.
HUNTER
Hunter measures dynamic visual acuity, or your ability to distinguish objects in motion as they decrease in size.
MOB
Mob, or multiple object tracking, measures your ability to track multiple moving objects in space and maintain a mental index of those objects when they are obscured.
PASS
Pass measures visual pursuits and saccades, or your eye's ability to coordinate while tracking a moving object or when the eyes move between static objects.
POUNCE
Pounce measures saccades and motor accuracy, the speed at which your eyes detect a new object, and how accurately your neuro-motor response can move to and extinguish the object.
SIDE EYE
Side Eye measures peripheral vision, or your ability to see things not directly in front of you.
SIGHT OF HAND
Sight of Hand measures your eye’s smooth tracking ability and overall motor coordination. Unlike saccades, which measure how your eyes jump from object to object, smooth eye tracking is your eye’s ability to move incrementally with an object.
Praxis Vision Eight Digital Tests: A Comprehensive Overview
I. Introduction: The Science Behind Praxis Vision
This section introduces the Praxis Vision eight digital tests, emphasizing their evolution from clinical experience and analog testing into precise, objective measurements of vision and visual performance.
II. Core Visual Function Tests:
A. Visual Acuity: Measures clarity of sight.
B. Dynamic Visual Acuity: Assesses the ability to track and identify moving objects.
C. Saccadic Eye Movements: Evaluates speed and accuracy of eye movements from one point to another.
D. Smooth Pursuit Eye Movements: Measures the ability to follow a moving target smoothly.
E. Visual Acquisition Time: Measures the speed of target identification.
F. Visual Reaction Time: Analyze the time to respond to a visual stimulus.
III. Visual-Motor Integration and Peripheral Awareness:
A. Visual Motor Integration: This course investigates eye-hand coordination and provides insights into activities like catching, hitting, handwriting, and reaching.
B. Central Peripheral Awareness (Magno/Parvo System): This examines the integration of peripheral and central vision, contributing to spatial awareness.
IV. Contrast Sensitivity and its Implications:
A. Contrast Sensitivity explores the ability to discern differences between an object and its background, which is particularly crucial for night driving and cataract detection.
B. Contrast Sensitivity and Fall Risk: This section highlights the link between reduced contrast sensitivity and increased fall risk, especially in the elderly.
V. Eye Tracking and Validation of Digital Tests:
A. Correlation with Eye Tracking Data: This section explains how Praxis Vision 8, while not directly using eye tracking technology, achieves results comparable to those obtained through virtual reality eye tracking.
B. Hardware Agnosticism and Accessibility: This section emphasizes the platform's flexibility, allowing for assessment on various devices, such as laptops, iPads, and desktop computers.
VI. Baseline Establishment and Performance Improvement:
A. Performance Vaulting and Progress Tracking: Describes the ability to establish baseline measurements and track individual visual performance over time.
B. Targeted Visual Training: Discusses the use of identified deficits to develop specific visual activities that enhance performance in areas like reaction time, acquisition time, eye movements, and visual-motor integration.
VII. Ocular Alignment and its Impact on Visual Performance:
A. Ocular Alignment Measurement: This section highlights Praxis Vision 8's advanced capabilities in measuring and detecting changes in ocular alignment.
B. Impact of Misalignment on Visual Performance: Explains how alterations in ocular alignment, often observed after concussions, can significantly affect visual processing and overall performance.
VIII. Applications in Concussion Management and Return-to-Activity Decisions:
A. Concussion and Ocular Alignment Changes: This section emphasizes the link between concussions and shifts in ocular alignment, which subsequently impact visual function.
B. Monitoring and Safe Return to Activity: Discusses the use of Praxis Vision 8 to monitor recovery, assess visual vulnerability, and determine the appropriate time for individuals to safely return to activities like sports, driving, and daily living following a concussion or neurological event.